Dustin Lance Black Takes To YouTube For Historic ‘8’ Play (VIDEO)

Dustin Lance Black stopped by the What’s Trending studio to talk about his new play, “8,” that premiered live on YouTube and his support for the overturning of California’s Prop 8 passed in 2008.

“All these people who had said all of these things against gay people for so long had to go in and raise their right hand,” says Black, about the Prop 8 court case that inspired the play. “And, their case fell apart, before our eyes.”

Since the proceedings weren’t broadcast, he decided to write a play and reenact the dramatic decision. He was pleasantly surprised to get an all-star cast, from George Clooney to Brad Pitt. “If I could accurately depict in 85 minutes what happened in that trial, people would cry, and people would laugh.” Since livestreaming on YouTube Saturday, the play has gotten over 400,000 views.

When asked about the conservative opposition rhetoric in the 2012 election, Lance argued that if Republicans “said what they’ve been saying in these debates, they would be purging themselves.” Continuing, “I dare Rick Santorum to raise his hand and tell the truth.”

Check out his campaign and videos at www.youtube.com/americanequalrights. Black is giving away the play, meaning that it can be adopted and reenacted in plays and schools anywhere in the country, in the hopes of spreading the message.